


through these veins

by 13warbob



Series: the wolfblood trilogy [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender, Wolfblood (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Werewolf, Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Canon Character of Color, Canon Gay Character, Canon Gay Relationship, F/F, F/M, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Korean Keith, M/M, Pining Keith (Voltron), Pining Lance (Voltron), Protective Adam (Voltron), Protective Keith (Voltron), Protective Lance (Voltron), Protective Shiro (Voltron), Slow Burn, Trans Adam (Voltron), Trans Character, Well - Freeform, Werewolf Adam (Voltron), Werewolf Keith (Voltron), Werewolf Lance (Voltron), Werewolf Shiro (Voltron), Werewolves Turn Into Actual Wolves, he isn’t from Korea but he has a half korean parent (krolia), i mean for the aliens obvi, tags are updated weekly!!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-24
Updated: 2018-07-24
Packaged: 2019-06-14 18:53:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15395226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/13warbob/pseuds/13warbob
Summary: 'He looked towards the sky and sighed, exasperation bleeding through, as howls echoed around him into the dark night.He hated the full moon.'————————————Lance McClain is a wolfblood - a type of creature that transforms into a wolf on the full moon - only he hasn’t transformed yet. His kind must obey only one rule - keep the secret. But every day, his best friend Pidge comes closer to the truth with her investigation into what she believes to be a beast on the moors. With the arrival of lone wolf Keith into their quiet town, tension increases for Lance and his fathers - will Keith help strengthen their pack, or will he expose them all?





	through these veins

**Author's Note:**

> it’s a wolfblood au!!!!!
> 
> please please please leave comments and kudos - you might not get a reply in good time but know that every last one of them is so so appreciated
> 
> this should (? hopefully) be updated on a regular weekly schedule but. best laid plans and all that.
> 
> alright - and with no further ado, welcome to ‘through these veins’!

 

* * *

Wearing a lime green face mask and eating store brand vanilla ice cream straight from the carton, Lance McClain watched as the girl on the TV faked a scream and rolled his eyes at the awful CGI. He licked the spoon clean, already reaching for the remote, when a sudden loud crash echoed from his garden. Pausing the television, he stood, slipping on the school shoes by the door and heading into the yard.

The door creaked open and he slipped outside, the light from the nearby street lamp the only reprieve from the inky darkness. Growling and the sound of tearing flesh continued in the garden, and he padded as quietly as he could around to the open side gate. The squeak of his shoes against the damp pavement reverberated through the night, and he felt his heart pounding in his chest as though it were about to explode.

He pressed his back to the side of the gate, listening to the animal behind it, and closed his eyes, steeling himself for what he was about to do. He jumped around, finding himself facing a large black wolf, with a shock of white fur at the top of his head, tearing into a raw chicken breast, as nearby a tawny brown wolf attempted to jump out of the cellar it was trapped in.

He took a step closer.

The larger wolf snapped his head up, a low, threatening growl issuing from his chest. Lance was unfazed, and threw his chest forwards, bending almost in half whilst keeping his gaze fixed on the wolf.

‘Get back inside,’ he snapped, not an ounce of fear visible, and the wolf stopped his growl suddenly, his muzzle snapping shut. His ears bent backwards in shock, and he took a step away from the boy. Before long, however, he began to growl again. He jumped to the side, and Lance easily followed the movement. Despite the loose curls falling and sticking into the lime green face mask he wore, he was almost as imposing a figure as the huge wolf before him.

The wolf attempted to escape by the other way, but again Lance followed, blocking his route. He continued trying to escape, Lance darting in front of whatever route he tried to take, until he stood almost directly in front of the entrance to the cellar. Lance began to walk forwards, slowly extending a hand, and the wolf stepped away from him until his back paws began to slide into the opening. He turned to growl again at the boy. Lance didn’t flinch, only raising his chest before lowering it again, lifting a single hand to move a curl from out of his face to lock his eyes with the wolf’s.

The blue of the teen’s eyes slowly faded, and an eerie, unnatural gold bled into its’ place. He was growled at once more, only this time he growled back, deep and animalistic. The wolf stumbled backwards in shock, falling into the cellar, and Lance followed him. He looked down the passageway into the darkness, until the tawny wolf jumped up and snapped his jaws dangerously close to Lance’s throat. He swiftly pulled off his shoe and hit him on the nose. He fell backwards with a whimper, the shoe following afterwards, and Lance was quick to shut the doors and bar them with a broom handle. He looked towards the sky and sighed, exasperation bleeding through, as howls echoed around him into the dark night.

He hated the full moon.

* * *

Lance ran down the stairs, shrugging a hoodie on over his school uniform. He walked quickly through his kitchen, scooping up a key sat innocuously on the dining table, and picking up an apple only to drop it into his pocket a second later. He looked at his watch and sighed.

Eight already - at this rate he’d be late for school.

He continued through the house until he came to a red door. Looking around himself, he slid the key into the lock and turned it. He slipped through the door, leaving it ajar, as he climbed down the stairs to the cellar. He picked up a key from on top of a storage container and walked towards another door encompassing a whole wall. Looking around himself again, he slid it into the lock, the lock making an audible cranking noise as the key turned. He slid the door open and stepped down the stairs, placing his hands on his hips and glaring at the two groaning bodies on the floor in obvious displeasure.

The den was a room beneath the cellar, where Lance’s parents and soon enough Lance himself would transform every full moon. It had everything a wolf needed - toys, food, water, and pack. It was dark and decorated with logs and old chairs for the wolves to play on, though sometimes they just couldn’t resist the call of the moon.

‘I think that chicken was off,’ Shiro said, standing and stretching his arms behind his back.

‘I can’t believe you two,’ Lance said angrily. ‘Breaking out and raiding the bins?’ He shook his head and shivered in disgust, watching as his other father got to his feet and shook himself out. He looked across the floor for his shoe, only to see a tattered pile of leather on the floor near his foot. ‘Oh, Dad,’ Lance groaned, picking up the hunk of leather and brandishing it like a weapon at his parents. He rolled his eyes and let his hand fall to his side, before turning back to climb the stairs, confident that his parents would follow him.

He groaned and grumbled to them until they reached the main house, and even then didn’t stop. ‘You’re always saying how we have to stay hidden from humans, and never give in to our wolf selves,’ he moaned, throwing his arms out and gesturing in his annoyance, ‘and the moment you get a chance, you’re out of the cellar and away!’

‘You don’t understand how powerful the pull of the moon is,’ his father consoled, dark eyes warm at the sight of his cub. He brushed a hand over the shoulder of his husband, leaving him to console their angered son. After all, Shiro was near certain his cub had inherited his stubbornness from Adam.

Lance pushed a hand through his shoe, wiggling his fingers out of the end that had suddenly become open toed, and groaned.

‘When you’re old enough to take wolf form-’ Adam began, but Lance was quick to cut in.

‘I won’t be a hypocrite who says ‘stay hidden’ and then breaks out at the first whiff of food!’

Adam took the shoe from his complaining son’s hand, walking it over to the bin and opening it, before turning to look at his mate.

‘And that chicken,’ Lance continued, shuddering in disgust and scrunching up his face.

Shiro groaned in agreement with his cub, turning away and drinking his cup of straight black coffee.

‘Actually, your dad’s not the only one who’s been eating things he shouldn’t,’ Adam said pointedly, looking at the empty ice cream carton in the bin before throwing the wrecked shoe on top of it.

‘Yes,’ Shiro agreed quickly, before turning to wag a finger at his cub. ‘And you were still dressed when you came outside young man, even if you did have that awful smelling mask on.’

‘Didn’t we agree in bed at ten on school nights?’ Adam asked, raising a single perfect brow,

Lance’s eyes widened and he struggled to control the sudden rush of blood to his cheeks. ‘I’m gonna miss the bus, I’m gonna have to go,’ Lance avoided, shrugging the handle of his bag over his shoulder and heading for the door.

‘Oh, and don’t go hitting me on the nose again!’ Adam called after Lance as he hurried out of the door, only to stop and groan as his feet met cold gravel.

He turned to complain to his parents, only for Shiro to point next to the door, where a pair of wellington boots sat innocently in wait, almost as if they were taunting him. ‘For fuck’s sake,’ he groaned, pushing a hand through his freshly straightened hair.

‘Language,’ Shiro and Adam reprimanded lightly in unison, neither looking up from their respective tasks.

* * *

 Lance walked across the concrete courtyard, wellingtons on and bag on his shoulder, and tried to keep his head down. He felt the heavy stares of Shay, Nyma, and Ezor, even as the rest of the school yelled and ignored him, and rolled his eyes as he heard the familiar snickers of Lotor and his entourage.

‘What are those?’ the white haired boy asked, muffling his snickers. ‘You look like a right idiot.’ He turned to his crew, who were quick to nod and laugh along with him.

‘Yeah, I do,’ Lance agreed, looking down at his feet. ‘But,’ he continued, shrugging his shoulders and looking away, ‘I can take these off.’ He turned to Lotor and raised a single brow in the way he’d learned from his mother. ‘You’re stuck with that face.’

Lotor’s smirk fell, and Lance was quick to shove past him. The white haired boy watched him leave, licking his lips in frustration, before turning and slugging Zethrid in the shoulder and insisting they follow him.

Lance continued across the concrete until he saw Hunk, the other not quick to stand up with an incredulous look on his face.

‘What are those on your feet?’ he asked.

Lance sighed, reaching to move his freshly straightened hair out of his face. ‘My shoes got eaten by werewolves,’ Lance confessed, the Samoan quickly flicking his gaze from Lance’s feet to his face in disbelief. ‘Didn’t you see the full moon last night?’ Lance teased, shrugging his bag onto his shoulder again.

‘Don’t you start,’ Hunk groaned, pulling a hand across his face. ‘I’ve already had all of this from- oh, Pidge!’

‘Lance!’

Lance turned, and sure enough, the short girl was running across the courtyard towards them.

‘Did you hear last night on the moors?’ she asked, almost vibrating in her excitement. ‘Howling,’ she answered her own question as she drew close, a wide unfamiliar smile almost tearing her face in two. ‘Here,’ she continued, fishing in her bag for her phone, ‘here, look what I found on Draymond’s Lane this morning.’ She pulled up a photo on the device and dropped the phone into the boy’s hand. On the screen, there was a paw print embedded in the wet mud of the moors. ‘I’m gonna compare it to the paw prints of different dogs.’

‘What, every type of dog?’ Hunk scoffed incredulously.

‘This is proof, Hunk!’ Pidge snapped, pulling the phone from Lance’s slack grip and waving it in Hunk’s face. ‘Proof there is something... weird, up there on the moors.’

‘Hey, Pidge,’ a voice called, and they turned to see Ezor, backed by Nyma and Shay, picking disinterestedly at her nails. ‘I saw something weird on the moors,’ she continued, and Pidge tilted her head towards her in interest. She looked up from her nails and met the shorter girls eyes, and smirked cruelly. ‘You.’

Nyma snickered behind her, and Lance sighed loudly. ‘Haven’t you three got hair curlers to play with or something?’

‘Step aside, bitches,’ Ezor said, waving her hands out.

‘If you can in those wellies,’ Nyma snarked, following Ezor’s path.

‘Sorry,’ Shay muttered, dark cheeks flushed even darker. ‘I’d recommend just staying out of their way, and not talking to them.’

‘Shay!’

The girl scurried away, and Hunk shouted after her. ‘Get over yourself, Ezor!’ he called, rolling his eyes,

‘This is Northumbria,’ Lance continued, shaking his head, ‘not gossip girl!’

‘Whatever,’ she said, before flouncing off to go flirt with Zethrid or whatever she did in her spare time.

‘I’ll show everyone,’ Pidge muttered, gaze fixed on her phone, before she looked up and met Lance’s curious stare. She shook her head slightly, before huffing out a harsh breath between her clenched teeth, and walked into the school.

Lance sighed and followed after her. Today was going to be a long day.

* * *

Lance shoved his boots into his locker, only slightly taking out his aggression on the innocent rubber, before slamming the door shut.

‘Oh, yes!’ Pidge’s voice sounded from the locker over. ‘New photography club members!’

‘Finally!’ Hunk exclaimed, he and Lance moving from their lockers towards the sign up sheet pinned to the door of the dark room.

‘You’re gonna need a bigger dark room,’ Mr Thace quipped, walking over to the poster.

‘What?’ Hunk asked, confusion plain on his face.

‘Well,’ the teacher continued, ‘apparently the Incredible Hulk is taking up photography! As well as Superman, and there is some awful handwriting in this school.’

Pidge shook her head, and Lance stormed across the corridor to pull down the list and look it over. ‘We’re gonna get new members,’ he said desperately. Thace met his panicked gaze coolly, a single eyebrow quirked, and Lance tried a different approach. ‘And even if we don’t, the photography club is still a vital part of school life!’

‘We can only fund clubs that have a cross section of pupils - you have three members, and these two only joined to keep you happy!’ Thace told Lance, as the boy looked at the crumpled paper in his hands in despair.

‘That is not true!’ Pidge exclaimed, voice an octave higher than usual.

‘The darkroom houses the official archives for the football team, you can’t just cancel that,’ Hunk said, Lance nodding along to his words blindly,

‘And the Stonebridge Moor cryptozoological society!’ Pidge exclaimed.

‘What?’ Thace asked, clear confusion evident in his face, and Pidge turned to her friends, expecting their help, only to see them offering her the same confused stare.

‘Huh?’

‘Look,’ Thace began, attempting to get them back under control, ‘I’m glad you all have passions, but,’ he said, raising a finger to stop Lance from attempting to speak, ‘that does not entitle you to a room on school premises, to use as your own private den! You have until tomorrow morning to find three new members, or I am closing you down.’

Lance stared at him incredulously, blue eyes wide with shock, and Thace completely ignored him. ‘Rolo! No running in the halls!’

Pidge exhaled roughly and pulled the sheet from Lance’s hand. ‘When I find out who did this-’ she said venomously. Lance flicked his gaze to the ground, and carefully moved a lock of hair behind his ear from where it had hung over it.

‘Nice one, crew,’ he heard Lotor congratulating Zethrid and Rax.

‘Serves them right,’ Zethrid agreed.

‘Stupid club.’

The three of them laughed among themselves, and Lance allowed his hair to fall back in front of his ear.

‘Zethrid,’ he spat.

He felt Pidge move next to him, and turned to find her looking at him in shock. ‘How’d you work that one out?’

He turned to Hunk for backup, only to find him giving him the same incredulous look.

He scoffed, and pulled the paper from Pidge’s hands, hitting it. ‘Who else has got such bad handwriting, come on,’ he said, pulling his bag onto his shoulder and turning to go to class. He had barely taken two steps when a strange scent caught his nose. Inhaling deeply, he watched as the scent almost lit up, a yellow gold amid the off white of the human pupils. He inhaled deeply again, and began to make his way down the hallway towards the source.

He heard Hunk call his name behind him in confusion, but paid no attention to the other boy. His entire being was focused on this scent. He felt himself knock into other students, but it was as though it was happening to another person. He had to find the source.

He had to find the invader.

He made his way through a set of doors only to find himself at a crossroads. By the time he had determined the oath to take, the bell had begun to ring, and people were moving. He continued he’d on his path, Hunk following a few metres behind. He jumped down a flight of stairs, only for the scent to completely dissipate, leaving no traceable source.

‘Lance! What are you doing, it’s time for class!’ He heard Hunk nagging him and shook himself, jolting back to awareness, staring longingly at the place the scent had vanished.

* * *

‘Welcome aboard,’ Lance heard, as he let Hunk drag him through the corridor and into the classroom, ‘my name is Mr Thace, I’m your form tutor as well as your head of year so you will be seeing a lot of me over the next year,’ he chuckled, receiving no response from the tall, grizzled boy he was talking to. ‘Everyone!’ The class turned to Thace, and the dark haired boy turned to face the class - and was that a mullet? Forget the chicken, this was what was going to make Lance lose it. ‘This is Keith Kogane, who I’m guessing is from... Korea!’

‘No,’ the boy - Keith - said completely seriously, with a slight furrow to his brow as he looked at Thace.

‘No,’ Thace said, as the class broke out into laughter, ‘he’s not from Korea, okay, sue me.’

Lance turned, inhaling deeply through his nose and noticing the trail of yellow gold scent that clung to the boy.

The class continued to laugh, and Thace tried valiantly to stop them. Lance fixed his eyes on the boy, and spoke, just as the room became silent.

‘You smell like my parents,’ he insisted, ignoring how the class broke out into laughter as soon as he’d spoken.

Keith met his gaze, confusion evident in his dark eyes, and Lance stumbled into his chair, never once breaking the stare.

‘Quiet!’ Thace yelled, before he began the register.

Keith began to walk to his chair, looking confusedly at Lance as he passed by, but eventually sitting down.

‘Ignore those idiots,’ Ezor told him, chin rested in the palm of her hand. ‘They’re a few coats short of a manicure.’

Keith looked as though he had no idea what was happening, but nodded as if he had full control of the situation.

‘Kogane,’ Nyma said, looking up through her lashes, ‘is a beautiful name. What does it mean?’

‘Where are you from?’ Shay asked softly, a kind smile on her face.

‘I live on the hill,’ Nyma interrupted before Keith could talk. ‘It’s where all the best houses are.’

He ignored the girls attempting to get his attention and met Lance’s eyes again, one pair of eyes filled with righteous anger and the other with genuine confusion.

* * *

 Keith climbed down the stairs, eyes fixed on the timetable he half in his hands. Lance knocked into him, moving him to a corner where no one would be able to overhear the conversation.

‘What are you doing here, Mullet?’ Lance demanded.

‘Firstly,’ Keith began, rolling his eyes, ‘it’s not a mullet. Secondly, I’m trying to find the-’

‘I meant here,’ Lance interrupted, blue eyes flashing, ‘in our territory. Don’t you know the rules? You can’t stay here. Fuck, if one of my my fathers got a sniff of you-’

‘I don’t even know you,’ Keith cut in, hands stretched out

‘Exactly,’ Lance bit out, glaring heatedly at the mulleted boy before him.

‘I don’t care whose ‘territory’ this is, I’m not sticking around anyway. And why would I, in this shitty dump. But no smelly boy tells me whether to stay or go!’

He shoved past Lance, knocking him away from the stairway, and studiously ignored the burning glare the other boy fixed on his back.

* * *

 ‘ _Smelly_ ,’ Lance growled, stabbing his fork aggressively into the almost plastic pasta served as though it had personally offended him.

‘Well, Lance, you did kinda start it,’ Pidge said bluntly. Lance looked to his best friend for support, only for Hunk to look at him with sad eyes and nod.

‘I didn’t!’ Lance insisted, scraping his fork against the ceramic of his plate, ‘He was the one who-’ he cut himself off, biting at the flesh of his lip and frowning. He wished he could tell his friends the truth, tell them the real reason Keith’s sudden appearance angered him so much, but it was against the ancient Law of his kind to allow humans to know of their existence. ‘Forget it,’ he muttered, before his eyes landed again on Keith’s back. The older boy was hunched over a sketchbook. ‘Someone must know something about him,’ he said, gaze fixed on his back. ‘Seen removal vans. Something.’ He chewed at his bottom lip again, his eyes oddly focused and intense. This was a far, far cry from the usual flirty, confident Lance that Hunk and Pidge knew and loved.

‘As always,’ Hunk said, drawing Lance and Pidge’s attention, ‘you two miss out the most important question.’ He flicked his gaze his gaze between the two of them quickly, before a slow grin spread across his kind features. ‘Is he any good at football?’

Lance rolled his eyes fondly, and a soft chuckle fell from Pidge’s lips. ‘Is that all you ever think about?’

Hunk pretended to think for a second, before smiling again. ‘Basically, yeah. Hey, Lotor,’ he called as the white haired boy walked past, ‘you gonna ask the new kid to try out?’

‘What, noodle boy?’ Lotor scoffed, looking over to where Keith was carefully shading in something in his sketchbook. ‘Don’t think he’s the right sort for the team, do you?’

Hunk looked back to Lance and Pidge, cheeks burning even darker than his regular skin tone. The three of them sat in silence for a few seconds, each prodding at congealed sauces, until Pidge cleared her throat uneasily.

‘He never said _you_ couldn’t ask,’ she offered.

‘Good point, Pidge,’ he agreed instantly, and Lance froze.

‘No, Hunk, listen to me-’

Hunk ignored him, easily pulling his wrist from Lance’s desperate grasp, and Pidge chuckled.

‘He won’t bite, Lance,’ she laughed, and Lance frowned.

‘I wouldn’t count on it,’ he muttered to himself.

* * *

 Hunk strode across the dinging room, worrying a bobble between his fingers. He approached Keith where he sat on his own, the other boy sketching calmly and silently. Hunk looked over Keith’s shoulder, and drew in a quiet gasp when he looked at it.

It was a wood.

To be more accurate, it was the wood near where they lived. Hunk couldn’t believe it. Keith had only been there for one day, and he could already recreate the wood perfectly.

‘That’s brilliant,’ he complimented, ‘you’re really good, you know?’

Keith looked up at him, moving his arm from where it had rested on his page. In the place where his arm had been was a wolf, with gruesome fangs and drool dripping from its’ muzzle as it stood mid snarl.

Hunk felt a shiver run down his spine.

’What do you want?’ Keith asked simply, already returning his attention to his drawing.

Hunk stood still for a heartbeat, the memory of the wolf flashing through his head, before he snapped out of it. ‘Just... wanted to know if you like football.’

Pidge peered at them from the other table, glasses slipping down her nose in her excitement, as Lance sat beside her biting at the skin around his nails in worry.

’Not really,’ Keith replied begrudgingly, never looking up from where he pressed his pencil to the paper.

’’Cause, you know,’ Hunk continued, ‘it’s a really good way to make friends.’

Keith snapped. 

Setting the pencil down harshly, Keith whirled to glare at Hunk. ‘I don’t like football,’ he growled, Hunk stepping backwards in his shock, ‘and I don’t want to hang around you and your weirdo friend.’ He stopped, glaring at Hunk, before he continued. ‘Got that?’ he snapped. 

‘Yeah,’ Hunk said, tucking his hands in his pockets, ‘got that.’

Keith returned to his drawing, rolling his eyes in annoyance. He began to shade again. more rough than he had been when Hunk had first interrupted him.

Hunk stood still for a second, pulling his hands from his pockets and drumming his nails against his trousers, before he sighed. ‘Obviously they don’t teach manners in Korea,’ he muttered as he walked away.

Keith raised his head to fix glaring purple eyes at the other boy’s back as he walked away, but ultimately returned his gaze to the table, shaking his head aggravatedly.

Pidge watched with a grimace as Hunk returned, the boy slumping into his seat with a heavy thump. She pushed her glasses up her nose.

’Next time,’ Hunk muttered, ‘you two approach the weird kid.’

Pidge frowned at him sympathetically, and Lance snorted quietly.

’Told you so,’ he teased softly.

The sound of heels clacking against the floor echoed through the halls as Ezor, Nyma, Axca and Shay walked across the linoleum towards Keith. Lance watched them as they went, absently pushing part of his hair behind his ear in order to more accurately eavesdrop.

’Hey, Keith,’ Ezor began, smiling at him flirtatiously as she dropped into one of the seats at his table, ‘look what we found.’ She shook out a magazine, and Keith looked at her with confusion written across his face.

’It’s a competition,’ Shay explained softly, with a kind smile on her face.

’We’re definitely going to enter,’ Axca, a girl from the year above, cut in.

’And we think you should too,’ Nyma continued, playing with a strand of bleached blonde hair, ‘because, like, you’re dead goodlooking.’

Keith smiled at her awkwardly. He was completely lost.

’All you need is a,’ Ezor began, before pausing and furrowing her eyebrows in confusion, ‘what’s it called, a photolio?’

’A portfolio,’ Shay said quietly.

Ezor laughed, obviously embarrassed, as Axca barrelled on.

’Come on, girls,’ she chided laughingly, ‘he’s not interested in all that. He’s only just got here!’

From where he sat, Lance rolled his eyes and shook his head in exasperation. He couldn’t believe how thirsty these girls were. He’d gone out with Nyma before - he thought she had taste. And yet, here she was, desperate for a mullethead.

Pathetic.

’What he needs,’ Axca continued, oblivious to Lance’s internal monologue, ‘is someone to show him around!’

Lance scoffed quietly. Like he’d be staying long. Lance and his fathers would make sure of it.

Keith turned to where Lance was staring, and he hurriedly looked away, his tanned cheeks fading to a soft coral.

’We know everything about everything,’ Nyma reassured him.

’That weird boy,’ Keith said, pointing at where Lance sat, ‘who’s he?’

The five of them looked st the table where Lance sat, and the boy tried desperately to avoid all of their gazes.

’Lance McClain?’ Nyma asked, before shuddering. ‘Can’t believe I ever went out with him.’

’Him?’ Ezor asked, before shaking her head. ‘Those country families have lived here for centuries. Adam’s been here ages, and his other dad moved when Lance was on the way, Now they all live here. If they’re born here, they never leave. They don’t like strangers,’ she said pointedly, noticing how Keith was keeping his gaze fixed on them, until he turned to face her again. She flashed him a smile with lipglosses lips. ‘Or questions,’ she finished.

’So they’re all kuckoo,’ Nyma singsonged, winding her finger in a circle near her temple. Axca and Ezor immediately giggled, though Shay frowned at the comment.

’But what are we talking about him for?’ Axca asked. ‘I want to talk about you.’

’And me!’ Ezor cut in, placing a hand on top of Keith’s, ignoring how he flinched away from her touch.

’And us!’ Nyma cut in pointedly, though still keeping her saccharine smile.

The girls around the table giggled, as Keith stared at them, completely trapped, before turning his attention to his sketchbook once more.

* * *

 Lance pulled the empty sign up sheet from the pin board in the hallway, looking st the crumpled paper in is hands with sadness in his eyes.

’We could offer snacks at meetings?’ Pidge offered, unlocking the darkroom and pushing the door open.

’ _I_  think we have an image problem,’ Hunk said, following her inside. ‘I mean, photography club, it just sounds so... boring. What we need is a cool club name, like,’ he thought for a second, before a wide smile spread across his face. ‘Snap Attack!’ 

‘Hunk!’ Lance reprimanded, though Hunk could see how badly his best friend was trying not to smile.

’Alright, alright,’ Hunk laughed, rolling his eyes in mock exasperation, ‘how about... Snaptastic!’

Pidge held her hands up in mock surrender, mouth firmly pressed into a line, though Hunk could see the mirth dancing in her hazel eyes. Lance groaned, leaning back against a shelf.

’Don’t be so _negative_ , Lance!’ Hunk joked, trying to see if appealing to Lance’s awful sense of humour would make his mood any better. ‘Get it? Negative?’ He gestured around the room.

Pidge rolled her eyes, pushing her glasses up her nose, and scoffed.

’Look,’ Lance said seriously, ‘we need three new members by tomorrow. What’s going on today? Where could we recruit new members?’

Hunk shrugged, but Pidge sat up as though she’d been electrocuted. She got to her feet, almost vibrating in her excitement. 

‘Miss Ryner’s badger stakeout!’ she cried, walking towards the door. Holding it open for Lance and Hunk, she made her way to the corridor, before showing the poster to her friends. ‘It’s open to anyone,’ she explained, ‘but it’s part of the Year Seven syllabus, so Year Sevens,’ she said, jabbing at the poster to emphasise her point, ‘have to go.’

’Pidge,’ Lance said, blinking in shock, ‘you are a genius!’

She shrugged modestly.

’If we give out all the club cameras,’ he continued, ‘we’re bound to get three new members by tomorrow!’

Behind them, Keith unlocked his locker. Lotor and his crones snickered behind him as he stared in shock at something that had not been there the last time he had checked.

’I thought I smelled something funny,’ Rolo laughed, as Keith pulled a handful of loose egg noodles from his locker.

’Is that your lunch, noodle boy?’ Rax sniggered.

Keith slammed his locker shut, brandishing his handful of noodles like a weapon. ‘I’m not even Korean,’ he snapped, but Lotor and his cronies just kept laughing. 

Lance turned from where he was examining the notice board, eyes worried. 

Lotor and his gang turned to walk away, still laughing, when Keith had had enough. He hurled his handful of noodles, and they hit Lotor square in the back.

He turned around.

Murder was evident in his gaze, but Keith was near shaking with the force of his pants and the trembling of his clenched fists.

Lance’s eyes widened. Keith wouldn’t wolf out in the middle of the hallway, right?

Keith continued to glare daggers at Lotor, his upper lip raising in a snarl. Lotor looked around himself at the people watching in anticipation, and began to stride towards Keith purposefully.

’Got a problem, noodle boy?’ he spat, before clenching his fists into the lapels of Keith’s coat. He went to shove him backwards, but Keith reacted faster. Using his grasp of Lotor’s shoulders, Keith jumped off of the ground, using his momentum to force Lotor onto his back. He stood above him, growling aggressively, and Lance stared.

Black started to thread through Keith’s veins, slowly becoming more visible over the cuffs of his jacket. Keith noticed, and let go of Lotor, stumbling backwards in shock. His entire focus was on his hands. 

Thace’s voice began to call down the hall, and Lance reacted immediately. Grabbing hold of the shifting Wolfblood, he forced him into the darkroom, just as Thace began to stride down the hall.

Lance slammed the door, locking it, before turning to face the panicking Keith.

’What are you doing?’ he gasped, turning to look around himself at the cramped and dim room. 

‘It’s alright.’

’Get out!’

Just breathe,’ Lance instructed, his blue eyes wide and imploring.

’You have to get out!’ he cried, stumbling backwards and knocking over various shelves in a loud clatter. He fell to the ground, grunting and growling loudly.

The light swung dangerously overhead.

Lance walked closer.

Keith shoved the shelf off of him, moaning and groaning in fear and pain. Lance watched with wide eyes, his pulse beating quickly in his ears.

Keith got to his knees, black veins racing across his face and teeth extending in his jaw. ‘I’m so sorry,’ he forced out, before he was gone, and in his place was a large, pitch black wolf. 

Lance gulped nervously.

The wolf eyed him, looking for an escape route, before running and hiding beneath one of the desk spaces. A threatening growl rumbled continuously from his chest.

Lance remembered how he approached his parents in wolf form - but Keith wasn’t his pack, wasn’t his _family_. His parents would never hurt him, would kill themselves and each other before they did.

Keith _would_.

He looked at the wolf beneath the table, terrified and seconds away from exposing the secret, and realised he had to try.

Swallowing his fear, he approached, one hand reaching out before him. The wolf ran. 

‘Keith!’ Lance yelled, whirling around to watch him as he fled.

The wolf ran through the dark room, slamming into shelves and desks, knocking down papers and devices in an almighty clatter in his desperate and instinctual attempt to escape.

Lance followed him, terrified and unsure. He’d never been around a wolf that wasn’t pack before.

Keith looked around, desperate for an escape route, as Lance walked closer, his fear evident in his face. The growl rumbling from Keith’s chest only increased in volume.

Lance extended his hand once more. He had him cornered. He slowly began to kneel, lowering his head and his hand, until he was kneeling with the palm of his hand pressed to his lowered knee in supplication before the invader. His instincts were screaming at him about being in such a position of vulnerability before an invader, but he turned them out. 

When he raised his head, his blue eyes had changed to burning gold.

Keith stared at him in shock, stumbling backwards, the growl in his chest suddenly cut off. He walked closer to Lance, before sitting in front of him.

There they sat, wolf and human, both with burning golden eyes, among the destruction and chaos of the dark room.

Two wolfbloods, wolf form and human, not of the same pack, but trusting each other.

Lance kept his gaze steady on the invader of not only his pack’s but his territory, barely daring to even blink.

* * *

 ‘He attacked me, sir!’ Lotor protested to Thace in the hall. ‘He’s off his head!’

’Where _is_ Keith?’ Thace asked. 

Pidge and Hunk inched closer to the door of the darkroom.

’I’ll catch up with him later,’ the man acquiesced with a sign. ‘You,’ he said, pointing directly at Lotor’s face, ‘follow me.’

Hunk watched as Thace led Lotor to his office, and prayed to God that Lance knew what he was doing.

* * *

Inside the darkroom, Keith got to his feet, breathing heavily. Lance walked around him, picking up clutter from the ground and organising it on the shelves.

Keith caught his breath for a few seconds, before he turned to Lance.

’I knew there was something about you,’ he said with a shaky smile. Lance ignored him, trying desperately to have the room somewhat clean before Pidge and Hunk inevitable barged in.

More Hunk, to be honest. He’d always been too nosey for his own good.

’But when your eyes went,’ Keith continued, staring at Lance in wonder. Lance slammed something onto a shelf heavily. ‘It’s true, isn’t it?’ he asked, quiet and thrilled. ‘You’re like me!’ 

He smiled to himself, completely thrilled. He wasn’t alone! There was someone else of his kind! ‘You’re like me!’ he repeated joyously.

’I’m not like you!’ Lance snapped, turning to face the other wolfblood. ‘I don’t show off!’ 

Keith stared at him, brow furrowed with confusion and distress.

’And, and pick fights,’ Lance said, furious, ‘and invade other packs’ territory! You’re a danger to us all,’ Lance snapped, advancing on the confused boy, ‘and the sinner you leave, the better!’

They met each other’s gaze, Keith lost and confused and desperately sad, and Lance burning with anger and the instinctual need to protect his pack.

The door slowly creaked open, and Lance spun to face the intruders.

Pidge and Hunk stood in the doorway with confusion written across their faces.

Lance shifted on his feet where he stood, moving his gaze to the side. He barely resisted the instinct to bare his throat.

 The girl looked around, shock and horror evident on her features. ‘What happened in here?’ she asked, her voice flat and demanding answers.

 Keith looked up from where he had been stood behind Lance, licking his lips and shaking his head. He began to stride purposefully towards the door. Pidge and Hunk moved to create a wall preventing his escape, but Lance spoke up, his voice harsh and cold.

’Let him go,’ he said, never moving his gaze from where it was fixed on the floor to his side, listening to Keith’s footsteps before he finally lifted his head and fixed his eyes on Keith’s back. ‘He doesn’t belong here.’

Keith turned to look at Lance, pain clearly written across his face. The other wolfblood only looked away.

Keith shook his head, before storming out of the darkroom.

* * *

 ‘Apologies, badger watchers,’ Miss Ryner said to the gaggle of students waiting in the alley near Coran’s Cafe, ‘we’re just waiting for the last few stragglers to show, and then we’re go in about five minutes.’

She left the alley to enter the cafe, and Pidge peeked from around the corner to check she had left. Once they were certain she’d gone, she, Hunk, and Lance entered the alley, digging cameras out of their pack backs and handing them to the students.

’All loaned from the photography club,’ Pidge said, pressing cameras into their hands with a smile.

’There’s still room for a few new members,’ Lance continued, before running ahead to sling a long arm around Pidge’s neck, much to her displeasure.

’Better sign up now though, yeah?’ Hunk finished, looking at the younger kids with a kind smile before turning to follow his friends into the cafe.

‘I still think we should tell someone, you know,’ he advised Lance as they walked to the counter.

’Yeah, tell Thace that the darkroom has been trashed, and see how quick he shuts us down then!’ he said snarkily.

’You gonna buy anything or not?’ Coran asked from behind the counter.

Pidge hummed, before selecting one of Coran’s homemade cake bars and dropping it onto the counter.

’One pound,’ he said after taking a quick glance at the purchase.

Pidge handed over the necessary amount and he thanked her, just as the sound of heels against wood entered the room.

Axca, Shay, Nyma, and Ezor had entered, and the trio turned to face them in shock.

’Are you going on the badger walk too?’ Hunk exclaimed.

Nyma snorted. ‘As if.’

‘Hey, Coran,’ Ezor asked, walking past the rest of her gang to the counter, ‘has Rhydian come in?’

‘Who?’

’He’s this tall?’ Nyma gestured about a foot above her head, and Lance could barely bite back his snort.

‘And dreamy,’ Ezor sighed.

’And he’s Korean, but the race, not the nationality. Like, British-Asian.’

‘Ah,’ Coran nodded, ‘the Holts’ new foster kid.’

Lance felt his mouth open slightly in shock. ‘Keith’s in foster care?’ he asked. A wolfblood child without parents? Family, _pack_ was crucial for wolfbloods - tame and wild alike. Did Keith have no one to show him how to control the wolf?

‘Oh, aye,’ Coran affirmed. ‘Must have been a bad boy, that one. To get moved all the way up here for a fresh start? In fact, it reminds me of my younger days...’

Lance swallowed. He was a wolf with no pack, who didn’t know what he was doing, and Lance had blamed him for moving like he knew what the rules of the wolfbloods were.

’He’s an orphan?’ Nyma asked softly.

‘I doubt it,’ Pidge cut in. ‘Most foster kids have parents somewhere.’

’Yeah, but he’s separated from them.’ Ezor sighed wistfully, fiddling with the ends of her colourful ponytail. ‘All alone in the world, stuck in a strange place, no one to turn to?’

Lance remembered the pitch black wolf in the dark room, remembered how scared he was of him - of _hurting_ him.

No one to turn to - and no one to turn _with_.

God, Lance was a _dick_.

‘Trying to make it all alone,’ Shay murmured sadly, and Lance snapped.

He dropped his bag heavily onto the table next to him, before turning to face Hunk. ‘Keep recruiting,’ he instructed, ‘I’ll meet you in the woods.’

Ignoring the protests of his friends, Lance left.

He ran from the cafe to the square, and looked around as though it would give him a clue to where Keith was. He inhaled deeply through his nose, picking up the scent of unfamiliar wolf, of Keith. 

He turned to where the scent rose over the steep roads, and began to run.

* * *

 ‘This is where we have to be very quiet,’ Miss Ryner instructed as she held the gate leading to the pathway through the woods for the students, ‘badgers come out around dusk, and we don’t want to scare them.’

Pidge and Hunk trudged through the gate.

’And,’ Hunk continued, lightly hitting a Year Seven in the chest, ‘photography really impresses girls, yeah?’

’So you will join up, won’t you?’ Pidge asked eagerly.

Miss Ryner walked past, a disapproving frown on her face. ‘Quiet,’ she instructed, before heading off to lead the troupe of students.

* * *

 Keith walked determinedly down the road leading out of Stoneybridge, fists clenched by his sides and backback slung over his back, ignoring the call of his name behind him.

’Don’t worry,’ he snapped viciously, ‘I’m out of here.’

‘ _Don’t_ ,’ Lance pleaded, ‘I was stupid, I’m sorry. Don’t go, we can help you!’

’ _Help_?’ Keith spat. He continued walking, Lance keeping pace at his side easily. ‘I’ve had help! Counselling, therapy-!’

’We can _really_  help!’ Lance insisted. ‘You need to learn how to control your wolf self before someone gets hurt - probably you!’

Keith stopped, shaking his head angrily at Lance. ‘You’re just like the rest of them!’ he said aggressively, before continuing on his route. He began to sprint, shoving past Lance.

The other boy watched him run, gasping for broken breaths. He looked near tears. Turning to the wood, he began to run.

Creepily accurate drawing or not - this was Lance’s home, his _territory_. Apart from his parents, he knew this place better than anyone - and that meant all the shortcuts.

Keith continued his run for a couple of hundred metres, before turning to see a path bare of any other people. He buried the seed of disappointment he felt deep in his chest, before turning back - only to see Lance burst from the trees a few metres ahead of him.

Lance looked at him, breathing heavily, before he ran to stand a few feet from him. ‘I k ow about the Holts,’ he explained. ‘I know you’re alone.’

’So?’ Keith asked angrily. 

‘I’m like you,’ Lance said. ‘You saw that.’

’You may be like me,’ Keith growled, ‘but you think just the same as them. You just want to make me better. Well, you know what? What I am, what I turn into - that _is_ better. It’s better than anything I’ve ever know and I’m not letting anyone take that away from me!’

He tried to push past Lance, but the younger wolfblood shoved him backwards. ‘I’m not gonna let you go!’

‘Go ahead. Chase me. Stop me.’ He huffed in disgust. ‘Use your wolfy powers, and find out how long it takes for someone to find out what you are. ‘Cause none of your mates know your little secret, do they?’ Lance looked away, avoiding his probing stare as heat flooded his cheeks. ‘I thought not. I’ve got nothing to lose here - unlike you.’

Kieth turned from him, and started to run into the moors. He jumped over the gate keeping the path from the road, and ran deeper and deeper into the wood. Lance looked down the road, before following and giving chase.

* * *

 Elsewhere in the wood, Pidge and Hunk stood by the children and teacher huddled behind a fallen log.

She lifted the cuff of her shirt, observing her watch with a critical eye. Pidge sighed. ‘Where’s Lance?’ she asked Hunk.

He merely shrugged at her, before turning back to where they were trying to spot the badgers.

* * *

 Lance chased after Keith, feeling the age old thrill of the Hunt humming through his veins. 

The two of them ran and hunted through the wood, the trees and leaves fading to a blue behind them with the speed they went. Keith would look backwards irregularly - either to check Lance still gave chase in either hope or fear that he’d lost him.

They eventually ended up in a clearing with random trees scattered across it, and Lance could see no sign of Keith. He looked around, confusion evident in his face, until a whistle sounded from above him. He looked up, and sure enough, Keith sat perched in a tree, a wide grin spread across his features. He laughed, before jumping, landing a few metres ahead of Lance, and soon enough, the chase was on once more.

The thrill of the Hunt thudded through their veins, predator and prey filled with adrenaline and instinct. They both grinned and laughed as they ran, only children having fun rather than a wolf fighting to protect his territory from an invader. They ducked overhead branches and pressed their fingers to the trees, leaving their scents lingering where they had been. 

Keith leapt into a ditch, Lance soon following after, and the two rolled down together until they collided in a mess of limbs and leaves.

In front of them, the badger watchers stood with cameras in their hands and frowns on their faces. The two of them got to their feet, breathing deeply and attempting to sort out their clothing.

’Sorry we’re late everyone,’ Lance offered weakly as Keith pulled a leaf out of his hair for him. ‘Seen any badgers yet?’

‘No,’ Miss Ryner snapped. ‘You two have scared of any animals for miles!’

Lance at least had the decency to look ashamed, even as Keith grinned with his instincts thrilled with the knowledge he had left a good mark on the other wolf with a strong chase.

’Come on, everyone,’ the teacher continued, ‘we’ll have to come back another day.’

As the students left, they passed their cameras to Hunk and Pidge, ignoring their questions on whether they woukd join the photography club.

Pidge watched them leave with a bone deep sigh, before turning to look wearily at Lance.

’Well done, Lance,’ she sighed as Lance pulled another leaf from his hair.

‘Yeah, we were so close to getting new members, and then you two had to show up and mess everything up!’

‘There was something important that I had to-‘

’What, more important than photography club?’ Hunk asked, scoffing and raising a thick eyebrow.

‘Yeah, actually!’ Lance snapped, as Keith turned to face him with gentle concern on his sharp features. ‘Keith is more important than the club.’ Hunk turned to look at Pidge in complete and utter disbelief as Lance continued.

‘The thing is, Keith and I,’ he said, turning to look at Keith desperately before looking back at his friends, ‘are related.’ Pidge and Hunk muttered in disbelief and Keith himself made a confused noise until Lance dug a sharp elbow into his gut. Distant cousins, on Shiro’s side. He’s the black sheep of the family, and I didn’t want him here. So I treated him badly. Which is why he lashed out, and trashed the darkroom.’ Pidge and Hunk both sighed and looked at Lance disapprovingly, and he felt his hackles raise. ‘You don’t have to be best mates, but Keith is a part of my life now. And that’s that.’

He looked hopefully between his two friends, a gentle smile on his face, and they deliberated what he had to say.

Pidge worried her bottom lip between her teeth, before she nodded. ‘Okay. Sure.’

Lance smiled at her, and the corners of Keith’s lips twitched upwards as well.

’Welcome to Stoneybridge, Keith,’ Hunk said, before frowning. ‘You... really don’t lie, football?’

Keith laughed, and shook his head. ‘No.’

‘Well,’ Pidge cut in, ‘I am frozen. So, can we just go?’

‘Yeah,’ Hunk agreed, and the two of them turned to walk back towards the town.

‘Might want to stay here and warm up,’ Lance said, looking up at Keith with a teasing smile, ‘it’s a long walk back to Korea.’

‘I’m not even Kore- oh,’ he said, watching as Lance’s smile only grew the more he talked.

The two of them laughed at each other for a second, before turning to follow Hunk and Pidge back to the cafe.

* * *

 ‘Here’s to the late, great, Brannington High photography club,’ Hunk said to the group of Lance, Keith, and Pidge, clustered in one booth in Coran’s with mugs of tea and hot chocolate set before them. ‘It was fun while it lasted, yeah? he asked, offering his mug to toast.

The four of them clinked their mugs together before drinking, as the bell to the cafe rang out behind them.

Nyma, Axca, and Ezor stood around the table, hands in their pockets.

’We have a proposition for you,’ Axca began.

‘You’ve got a proposition for us?’ Lance asked, raising an eyebrow.

‘It’s this competition,’ Nyma continued. ‘It’d cost way too much for us to get out photos done professionally - and we need a photolio.’

’A portfolio,’ Pidge corrected.

Nyma rolled her eyes. ‘Whatever.’

‘So,’ Ezor said, ‘if you take our photos, we’ll join your photography club.’

’Then everybody wins!’

Pidge looked very, very torn.

’We’re not actually going anywhere near your stupid darkroom,’ Axca snapped, ‘we’ll just out our names down so Thace keeps it open.’

‘Do we have a deal?’ Nyma asked.

Pidge looked at Hunk and Lance, all three of them barely keeping themselves from smiling. Lance stood, raising his hand to his mouth and spitting in it, Pidge laughing behind him, before extending it towards Ezor.

She flinched backwards in disgust. ‘Please,’ she spat.

Nyma shuddered, before she saw Keith, She perched on the edge of the table. ‘Is Keith joining?’ ahe asked.

Keith looked up from where he had been drinking his hot chocolate, turning to face Nyma. ‘No?’ he said confusedly.

Hunk, Lance, and Pidge struggled to keep in their guffaws at her distraught face.

* * *

 The trio began their walk back home, before Lance turned around. ‘I’ll catch up with you guys later, alright?’ he said, before jogging over to Keith. ‘Keith!’ he called, and watched as the other stopped and waited for him to reach him.

’I’ll walk home with you,’ he offered.

’I never said I was staying.’

’That’s a pity,’ Lance sighed, ‘you’ve got a fan club.’ He tapped his arm and gestured towards the cafe, Keith tucking a lock of hair behind his ears in order to hear what Lance meant.

’He’s just gorgeous,’ Ezor sighed.

‘I bet he likes me,’ Nyma smirked.

’He does not,’ Axca said slowly, rolling her eyes painfully hard.

’If that doesn’t scare you off,’ Lance said, laughing, ‘nothing will.’

He bumped against Keith’s side gently as they began their walk.

* * *

 The sound of the babbling brook filled the wood as Lance and Keith walked through the trees, hands in their pockets.

’So,’ Lance said slowly, ‘if you’re not from Korea, how’d you end up with Kogane?’

’I figured one of my parents was Korean, and I’d gotten it from them. At least, I think.’

They walked in silence for a few more metres, before Lance spoke again.

’How long have you been in foster care?’

‘Since I was two,’ he answered quietly.

‘And nobody knows what you are?’ Lance asked in shock.

They walked in silence once more, the crunch of the leaves beneath their feet and the song of the birds the only sound, before Lance could no longer bare it.

‘So what did you do for the full moon last night?’

‘I couldn’t stay in my bedroom, could I?’ Keith pointed out reasonably. ‘I climbed out of my window,’ he admitted.

’So it was _your_ paw print that Pidge found.’ Lance realised.

Keith just shrugged.

’Was it your first change?’

’Second,’ Keith replied. ‘First got me chucked out of my last foster home.’

‘What happened?’ he asked quietly. 

‘Dunno,’ Keith said. ‘I went to bed, and I woke up in a ditch. Turns out I’d trashed my bedroom, so they kicked me out.’

‘Must have been hard,’ Lance murmured.

Keith sighed, before changing the subject. ‘Anyway, what about you? I mean, full moons must be epic out here.’ He looked around at the woods, beautiful and secluded and far from civilisation.

Lance blushed, and averted his gaze. ‘Well, I, uh, haven’t started transforming yet.’ As soon as he’d finished, he was darting away.

‘Wait,’ Keith said, following slowly, ‘so I know more about this stuff than you do?’

’Oh, yeah,’ Lance replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes. ‘You’re the expert. That’s why you lost it with Lotor in front of half of the school.’

‘I didn’t know that could happen,’ Keith defended himself, walking to join Lance on the bank. ‘I thought werewolves only got hairy on the full moon.’

‘We feel the urge to change when we feel threatened or angry too,’ Lance said, starting to walk across the stepping stones dotted across the river. ‘Learn to control it, and you can transform whenever you want.’

‘How do you know all this stuff?’

‘My parents explain it all to me. They don’t want the disaster that was Pa’s first transformation happening to me.’

’You have parents like us?’

‘Yep,’ Lance confirmed. ‘And by the way,’ he said, turning on the rock he balanced on in the middle of the river to meet Keith’s eyes, ‘it’s wolfblood, not werewolf. We’re not monsters,’ he grinned, before imitating a werewolf howl.

Ksith laughed, before he frowned softly. ‘The weird thing is,’ he continued, ‘I can’t even remember being bitten.’

Lance laughed. ‘Bitten?’ he asked, voice teasing. ‘You don’t get bitten,’ he said, shaking his head exaggeratedly.

’Don’t laugh at me,’ Keith growled.

Another laugh burst out of Lance, before he calmed down. ‘Sorry,’ he apologised, only half meaning it.

‘It’s just,’ he continued, ‘you really do have a lot to learn.’

Keith frowned. ‘Well, teach me it then,’ he said, like Lance was the one being ridiculous and the solution was totally obvious. ‘Smelly boy,’ he added, smirking at Lance.

‘You were born this way,’ Lance said eventually. ‘You’re _normal_.’ Keith looked at him questioningly, and Lance exhaled roughly. ‘Look around you,’ he instructed. Keith looked, looked at the trees and the leaves and the river and the sky, and Lance kept speaking to him. ‘Everything you thought made you a freak, sight, hearing, speed, sense of smell... They’re all completely normal for a wolfblood.’

Keith looked back at him, Lance meeting his gaze with a kind smile, before his pale cheeks flushed and he looked back down at his feet. ‘So,’ he started, ‘say I do stick around. Only for a bit,’ he said, noticing how Lance had begun to smile, ‘no promises.’

Lance shrugged, though something in his eyes was gleaming in delight. ‘You’d have a pack at last,’ he said. ‘People to teach you.’

’Oh, no,’ Keith said, shaking his head and waving his hand as thought it would remove Lance’s words from the air. ‘No rules, no lectures. You can keep your group hugs and your big furry family. I do things my way,’ he insisted.

’Lone wolf, huh?’ Lance teased, raising an eyebrow. He watched as Keith crossed the river, before speaking again. ‘So next time you lose control of your wolf self, what happens then?’

‘Well, uh,’ he said, ‘that’ll be an interesting day, won’t it?’

Lance rolled his eyes and shook his head, but smiled at his newest unofficial pack member nonetheless.

God, he hoped his dads liked him.

**Author's Note:**

> please leave comments and kudos if you liked it hell even if you didn’t but i’ll see you next tuesday!


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